Damian Warner knows where he’s been and where he needs to go. That golden road, like it has so many times, starts again at home.

“It’s been a little different, not necessarily the same routine as before,” the Canadian decathlon star said recently at Thompson arena where he has returned to train after two years in Calgary. “But my family and friends are here. I don’t have to use my GPS to go anywhere. I had to do that often in Calgary. In London, I can pretty much close my eyes and get to the right place.

“I had a good time (in Calgary) and now, I’m happy to be back.”

The London address has changed for him and girlfriend Jen Cotten.

“The place where we used to live was taken,” the 29-year-old said, “but we were looking for something a little bigger.”

There is a puppy on board, too.

“Full of energy,” Warner said with a grin. “She’s an Australian shepherd-cattledog mix. We named her Indigo because, when we first got her, her eyes had a bluish tint. I’ve got to try to get her to do some of these events for me. She never stops playing and she’s faster than I am.”

No one has ever questioned Warner’s speed. It’s the throwing and jumping that will determine if he reaches his three remaining career goals: world champion, Olympic gold and world-record holder.

The next worlds will be held this fall in steamy Doha, Qatar. The Olympics are next summer in Tokyo.

The record, currently held by French rival Kevin Mayer, stands at 9,126 points.

Warner established his career best of 8,795 a year ago at Gotzis, Austria. He will be back there to try for his record-tying fifth Hypomeeting crown next week — and see if he has 205 points or more in him.

“I definitely believe I can score over 9,000,” he said. “Is that this year or next? Who knows? It’s one of those things that just happens. You do all the training that prepares you to score eight metres in long jump or 5.20 metres in pole vault. You do everything correctly and if the cards play in your favour, you’re there.”

Damian Warner

Decathlete Damian Warner talks to his coach Gar Leyshon during pole vault practice in Western University's Thompson Arena in London on Wednesday. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

Decathlete Damian Warner works on his run during pole vault practice in Western University's Thompson Arena in London on Wednesday. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

Decathlete Damian Warner practises the pole vault in Western University's Thompson Arena in London on Wednesday. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

Decathlete Damian Warner practises the pole vault practice in Western University's Thompson Arena in London on Wednesday. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

OLYMPIC PLANNING: This is an awkward season because worlds are so late. You couldn’t dream of holding them any earlier in Qatar or the athletes would roast.

So Warner’s head coach Gar Leyshon mapped out the period from last November to next July as one giant campaign.

He will compete in three decathlons this year: Gotzis, the Pan Am Games in Lima, Peru, in the summer and then the worlds.

“At first when we saw the Tokyo schedule and these worlds, it tossed in a whole new wrinkle,” Warner said. “But when you sit down and look at it, it’s going to work well. It’s almost a year since my last decathlon, but in the 14 months leading into the Olympics, this will be the most decathlons I’ve ever done.

“We’ll take a little short rest after worlds, then bang — the Olympics will come up very quickly.”

SEASON LAUNCH: Warner snapped the cold-weather period with a series of two-week training camps south of the border. He went to IMG in Florida, then Westmont College in Santa Barbara and, most recently, Louisiana State University, where he threw just under 50 metres in discus — a personal best.

“If I’m able to do that and improve javelin, there are a lot more points there, too,” he said. “That’s exciting. There are so many opportunities in all 10 events, even the speed ones.”

He has been eating heartily, too.

On the road, Leyshon and fellow coach Dennis Nielsen cook the meals. Warner often chows down on bacon and eggs for breakfast, oatmeal with fruit and a lot of peanut butter. There is room in his diet for desserts, too.

“He isn’t obsessed with what he eats and takes no supplements,” Leyshon said. “We met with Jen Sygo (nutritionist for Athletics Canada and basketball’s Toronto Raptors) in November and she tested him and he was at 6.1 per cent body fat. He’s probably at 187 pounds now — five more than when he competes. His weight doesn’t change three or four pounds over the course of a year.

“Some athletes, it’s 20. He has a very good metabolism and he’s a lot stronger than I’ve ever seen him.”

AROUND THE BLOCK: On the world circuit, Warner has quietly become a veteran. But in terms of actual decathlon experience, he is still in the lower to middle range.

He believes the move to Calgary and time spent with Les Gramantik was beneficial. He feels prepared to take another jump.

“A lot of the coaches I’ve worked with here and even internationally tell me you have to be in control of your own career,” he said. “This is yours and you want to make sure you’re comfortable and happy with it. Over the years, I’ve taken a lot more responsibility that way (in verbalizing) what I believe I should be doing and what could help.

“It’s worked out better than anyone would have thought going back and forth.”

When he originally left London, he made it clear to his coaches he considered them family and their friendship was paramount. He has a tremendous rapport with Leyshon, who took a two-year teaching leave to help him through the Olympics.

“He’s easy to deal with, except at the card table,” Warner said. “He’s smart, he doesn’t cheat, but we play this card game called Wizard and he’s just not very good at it.”

TIME TO COMPETE: The Gotzis event is an encouraging place to start. Warner can match Roman Sebrle as the meet’s all-time men’s champ with a fifth time.

“We only do three of these a year, so you want to win every time out,” he said. “We’ve got to go there and perform.”

Unfortunately, he won’t get to measure himself against Mayer. The annual meet in Talence, France, moved up to June this year and the home-country hero should be the star of the show.

“He’s going to continue to perform,” Warner said. “He has so much potential and talent, he can score even higher than (9,126). It makes the rest of us have to step up to see if we can challenge him. We expect it and that’s what I’m going to do.”

GETTING THERE: Last year, Warner threw over 15 metres for the first time in shot put. Those gains have transferred to the early part of this season. His javelin, with help from Joel Skinner in Sarnia, should be a point producer now.

The enemy, of course is the ticking of the clock.

“”People will be surprised at his throws this year,” Leyshon said. “That and the long jump will be good. We’re working on pole vault. It’s the most complex event and we’re making some changes. But when you have 10 events, you really have 1/10th of the time as everyone else to work on things. You have to keep that in mind. There’s never enough time.”

FEELING LUCKY: Warner, Leyshon said, was never the golden boy. No one told him he was going to be the next great decathlete in the world.

“Because he’s such a natural, he makes it look easy,” the coach said. “He isn’t given credit for the work he’s done and for all the things he’s gone through. He’s going to go to worlds this year and win.”

You need that kind of confidence because this is a supremely humbling sport. One mess-up, you’re done.

Warner always keeps his career in perspective.

“Things just happened randomly and I was surrounded by the right people,” he said. “I knew I loved sports and that path showed me the decathlon. I love the sport, but it wasn’t something I even knew about at a younger age. You might get little injuries, but you wouldn’t trade it for anything. I enjoy being an athlete every single day.”

SPONSORS NEEDED: As with the road to bronze in Rio, the Warner team is in need of financial support.

The hope is businesses in the city — and across Canada — come on board for the final push.

“He compromised his whole career,” Leyshon said. “Top-level programming for someone who is the best in the world is expensive and you can’t train around the hockey rink all the time. I don’t think people realize how little money Damian gets to pay for everything.”

The $30,000 he receives in government funding must be enhanced.

“You get what you pay for,” Leyshon said. “We can do everything we need to do, but we need some help.”

And who wouldn’t want to see an athlete from London, who elected to come home, win an Olympic gold medal?

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